On my twenty-fifth birthday, my cousin gave me a lucky old coin.
Late that night, while I was binge-watching a show, it started passing judgment on me.
"Pretty face, kind heart — and yet you've gone soft in the head."
I assumed it was dubbing from the show, so I closed the app and opened my messages to reply to Viola Pruitt.
*I am definitely not going to that setup.*
"Dumb as a rock. Your cousin's going to that date pretending to be you, and she'll not only save the future richest man in the country, she'll marry him too."
"Then again, it's no wonder. Your cousin's whole family has been planning this for a long time."
"First they swallowed the huge inheritance your parents left behind, then they raised you on scraps and small favors until you turned eighteen. And now they're about to sell you off to some backwater in the mountains."
The little coin muttered on and on, and my heart shattered into pieces.
Fine. Let's start with the matchmaking date, then.
1
After washing up, I dug out a length of red string and hung the coin around my neck.
Just as I was about to leave, my cousin Viola messaged me.
*Alberta, whatever you do, don't go to that date. You'll get taken for a ride, badly.*
Right after that, my aunt messaged too.
*Alberta, I had your uncle ask around. There's hardly a decent person in that hiking group of yours. You should just get out of it.*
The hiking group my aunt was talking about didn't only do hiking. Most of what happened there was cutting-edge tech discussion.
If this had been before, I would have thought carefully about what they said, and most likely gone along with it.
The little coin started muttering again.
"That group is full of big names in the industry. Your uncle couldn't get in even if he tried. The bar there isn't low, you know."
I sent the same reply to each of them.
*Understood.*
I rode my scooter down to the South Side, taking my time, and got to the corner coffee shop.
Seat sixteen. I ordered an iced Americano and a mocha, no sugar.
While I waited, I messaged today's date.
*I moved the location to the corner coffee shop. Is that a problem?*
He replied fast.
*No problem. There in half an hour.*
He said half an hour, but the coffee had barely arrived before he showed up.
"Hudson James."
"Alberta Henson."
We introduced ourselves and quickly slid into the kind of tech talk I knew well.
An hour later, Hudson said shyly,
"I didn't expect you to be this impressive. Can I be your boyfriend?"
With a small, petty urge to get back at my cousin, I agreed on the spot.
"Sure."
Hudson instantly looked much happier.
"Can I invite you to come see my studio?"
"Of course."
Walking out of the corner coffee shop, Hudson gentlemanly put me in the passenger seat and reminded me to buckle up.
His driving was smooth, and not slow either.
The car turned into a gated villa neighborhood and stopped at Villa No. 9.
As we got out, Hudson gave me a small smile.
"I like quiet, so I turned my own house into my studio."
The tour was genuinely a pleasure, but near the end the villa lost power.
"Ah……"
I heard Hudson cry out and quickly asked,
"What's wrong?"
When he didn't answer, the little coin prompted me.
"He's got claustrophobia. Turn on your phone flashlight, quick."
I tapped at my phone a few times, and light broke into the dark space.
Hudson's face was pale, and he was pressed close against my side.
"Sorry……"
I looked at him with an ache and a helpless sort of pity.
"Where's your phone?"
Slightly embarrassed, he brought up the flashlight on his own phone, but his body was still trembling.
"I have a little problem……"
"I can tell."
I cut him off, not gently. "Is it claustrophobia?"
Hudson clearly looked surprised, but he still nodded silently.
My phone buzzed. A message from my cousin.
*Alberta, you didn't go to that date, did you? Where are you?*
Hudson's phone buzzed too. He opened his messages, frowning, right in front of me.
The profile picture was my cousin's.
*Hudson, it's me, Alberta Henson. Are you not at Cape Point Park yet?*
